Environmental review of the Taoyuan Aerotropolis project should be expanded to include all areas affected by proposed land expropriation, land rights advocates said yesterday in a protest outside the Environmental Protection Administration in Taipei.
More than a dozen demonstrators shouted slogans accusing Taoyuan International Airport Corp of “cutting corners” in its application materials.
“When the government discusses benefits, they refer to the entire project area, but in applying for environmental review, they are seeking to downplay and limit the scope to be considered by limiting it to the runway itself,” Aerotropolis Anti-forced Eviction Alliance member Tien Chi-feng (田奇峰) said.
“If they were using ordinary land expropriation procedures, the runway area would be the scope of what is affected, but they are planning on using zone expropriation affecting more than 4,000 hectares, and that area should be included as well,” Tian said.
Rather than directly acquiring land for a planned third runway for Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, government plans call for zone expropriation, which would also reshuffle neighboring land to facilitate development in an Aerotropolis “egg white” district planned around the runway “egg yolk,” Tien said.
The necessity of zone expropriation has been controversial, with Tien saying that directly purchasing or trading for required land would reduce the affect area.
“Application materials for zone expropriation and ordinary expropriation should be completely different, but they are attempting to use ordinary expropriation materials,” Taiwan Association for Human Rights housing specialist Lin Yen-tung (林彥彤).
“The report states that [the project] will need 3.95 million cubic meters of soil for the project, but does not state where the soil is supposed to come from and how related dust pollution during transportation will be addressed,” he said, adding that there was also no discussion of the area’s geology and waterways.
Tropical depression TD22, which was over waters south of the Ryukyu Islands, is likely to develop into a tropical storm by this morning and pose a significant threat to Taiwan next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The depression is likely to strengthen into a tropical storm named Krathon as it moves south and then veers north toward waters off Taiwan’s eastern coast, CWA forecaster Hsu Chung-yi (徐仲毅) said. Given the favorable environmental conditions for its development, TD22’s intensity would reach at least typhoon levels, Hsu said. As of 2pm yesterday, the tropical depression was about 610km east-southeast of Taiwan proper’s
Four factors led to the declaration of a typhoon day and the cancelation of classes yesterday, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said. Work and classes were canceled across Taiwan yesterday as Typhoon Krathon was forecast to make landfall in the southern part of the country. However, northern Taiwan had only heavy winds during the day and rain in the evening, leading some to criticize the cancelation. Speaking at a Taipei City Council meeting yesterday, Chiang said the decision was made due to the possibility of landslides and other problems in mountainous areas, the need to avoid a potentially dangerous commute for those
Typhoon Krathon, a military airshow and rehearsals for Double Ten National Day celebrations might disrupt flights at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport in the first 10 days of next month, the airport’s operator said yesterday. Taoyuan International Airport Corp said in a statement that it has established a response center after the Central Weather Administration issued a sea warning for Krathon, and urged passengers to remain alert to the possibility of disruptions caused by the storm in the coming days. Flight schedules might also change while the air force conducts rehearsals and holds a final airshow for Double Ten National Day, it added. Although
SEMICONDUCTORS: TSMC is able to produce 2-nanometer chips and mass production is expected to be launched by next year, the company said In leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing China is behind Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) by at least 10 years as the Taiwanese chipmaker’s manufacturing process has progressed to 2 nanometers, National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Minister Wu Cheng-wen (吳誠文) said yesterday. Wu made the remarks during a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Education and Culture Committee when asked by Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wu Pei-yi (吳沛憶) about a report published in August by the Chinese version of Nikkei Asia that said Taiwan’s lead over China in chip manufacturing was only three years. She asked Wu Cheng-wen if the report was an accurate
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